Lubricating means for sewingmachine loop takers



F. PARRY Aug, 24 i4.

LUBRICATING MEANS FOR SEWING MACHINE LOOP TAKERS Filed June 12, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet l yrdn f amy pi mam 7W 'I M F. PARRY Aug. 24, 1948.

LUBRICATING MEANS FOR SEWING MACHINE LOOP 'IAKERS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 12, 1945 yran pan/ 7 Patented Aug. 24, 1948 LUBRICATING MEANS FOR SEWING- MACHINE LOOP TAKERS Frank Parry, Bridgeport, Conn., assignor to The Singer Manufacturing Company, Elizabeth, N. J., a corporation of New Jersey .Application June 12, 1945, Serial No. 599,058

'7 Claims. 1 p

This invention relates to sewing machines and, more particularly, to novel and useful means for supplying lubricant to the raceway of a rotary lock-stitch loop-taker.

One of the objects of this invention is to provide a simple and effectiv means for elevating act as an obstruction and form an air lock which prevents the free flow of oilthrough the small conduits. It is one of the objectives of this invention to provide a supplemental reservoir located at the lower end of the vertical hook-carrying shaft with means for escape of the air bubbles and to provide at the lower end; of the tubular hookshaft 2. centrifugallyacting pump which extends into the supplemental reservoir and forces the oil upwardly through the bore of the shaft.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved form of removable filtering cartridge which is insertable in the bore of the tubular hook-shaft.

The invention comprises the devices, combinations and arrangements of parts hereinafter described in connection with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate a preferred embodiment of th invention and in which:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation, partly in section, of a portion of a sewing machine embodying the invention.

Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse section taken substantially along the line 2- -2 of Fig. 1, certain of the parts being shown in elevation.

Fig. Bis a horizontal sectional view taken substantially along the line 33 of Fig. 1,

Fig. 4 is a top plan view of the rotary hookbody, the thread-case being removed therefrom.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the removable filtering cartridge.

In the illustrated embodiment, the sewing machine has a horizontally disposed work supporting bed In which carries a throat-plate I! having suitable slots through which a four motion feeddog l2 operates. The feed-dog I2 is apertured to receive a reciprocatory eye-pointed needle l3. and is opposed by the usual spring-depressed presser-foot M, For a full disclosure of the machine and its feeding mechanism, reference may be had to the patent to W. Myers, No. 2,128,031 of Aug. 23, 1938.

Located beneath the slide-plate l5 carried by the bed In is a rotary loop-taker of the verticalaxis rotary-hook lock-stitch type and whichcooperates with the eye-pointed needle l3. in the formation of lock-stitches. Theloop-taker comprises a cup-shaped body 16 formed with a needle-thread loop seizing beak I! and an annular raceway I 8 in its side walls. J ournaled in the raceway is the peripheral bearing, rib ll! of a thread-case 20 about which the needle-thread loops are cast in the formation of stitches. The thread-case 20 is restrained against rotation with therotary -loop-taker in theusual and well known manner.

The rotary loop-taker is carried at the upper end of a vertically disposed and tubular hooksh'aft 22 having its longitudinal bore 23 extending throughout the length of the shaft and opening at its upper end in the bottom wall of the cup-shaped hookbody Hi. The hook-shaft 22fis jolurnaled in vertically spaced bearings 24 and 25. Theupper bearing 24 is disposed in a vertical aperture formedin the horizontal top wall .26 of a hook-saddle 21, and the lower bearing 25, which is in the form of a cylindrically shaped centrally bored bushing, is fitted in a suitable vertical aperture formed in the lower wall 28 of the'hook saddle.

As will be observed in Figs. 1 and 2, the lower end of the hook-shaft 22 terminates at a point about midway of the ends of the central bore 29 in the bearing bushing 25 and the lower end of the bore 29 is closed by a screw plug 30, thereby providing a supplemental oil reservoir 46 at the lower end of the hook-shaft 22.

The hook-saddle 21 is suspended from the bed by the-extending portion 32 of a bushing 33 carried by a lug 34 formed on the lower face of the bed Hi, and an arm "35 secured by the screw 36 to the lug 31 formed on the bed lb. The hooksaddle 21 is in the form of a hollow oil tight housing, one side of-which is formed by-the removable cover-plate 38. Journaled in suitable bear- .tend into the auxiliary reservoir.

ings located below the bed is the usual actuating shaft 40 which passes through the housing and functions to actuate the loop-takers and feeding mechanism of the machine. Located within the housing and fixed to the shaft 45 is a spiral-gear 4| which, through a second spiralgear 42 fixed upon the hook-shaft, rotates the latter.

The cover-plate 38 is formed with a suitable aperture through which the shaft 40 extends and, to prevent the escape of oil through the aper ture when the machine is operated, the gear 4| is formed with an undercut annular groove 4i and the hub of the gear is tapered as illustrated.

in Fig. 3. Fixed at one end to the cover-plate 38 is a circular flange 39 which extends around the tapered hub. The free end of the flange 39 is flared outwardly at 3.9 and terminates adjacent the gear 4! and within the undercut groove 45. Thus oil splashed upon the cover-plate 38 and gear 4! is prevented from collecting on the case wall and working its way through the aperture.

The forward portion 28 of the bottom wall of the hook-saddle is of" substantial thickness, whereby the upper face of the thickened Wall portion forms a horizontal ledge 44 which is disposed at a higher level than the bottom portion of the main oil'reservoir .45. Milled in th exposed face of the Wall portion is an inclined groove 41 which, when the cover-plate 38 is in place, forms an oil conduit having its upper end communicating with theledge 44 and its lower end communicating with a horizontally arranged duct 48 formed in the bushing 25 and leading to the supplemental reservoir 46. l

' As shown in Fig. 1, the bushing 25 is cut away at a point on its upper end and adjacent the gear 42 to provide a clearance 50 below the gear 42. 7 An inclined bore is formed in the bushing and connects the clearance space 50 with the sup- Iplemental reservoir 46. The inclined bore 5| forms a duct permitting air bubbles to escape from the supplemental reservoir 46 and it will be noted that the bore 5| is vertically inclined so that its wall will break into the vertical bore 29 at the point at which the lower end of the hookshaft 22 terminates.

From the foregoing description, it will be understood that when the machine is operated the rotation of the gears 4| and 42, will pick up the oil in the main reservoir 45 and throw it upon the ledge er shelf 44. Some of the oil thrown on the shelf will flow, by gravity, down the inthe loop-taker raceway I8, I have inserted a member 49 into the lower end of the shaft to ex- This member or sleeve 49 is formed with a bore 49' having the shape of an inverted truncated cone, which upon rotation of the shaft acts to raise the oil from the supplemental reservoir 46 upwardly through .the hollow shaft 22 by centrifugal action.

'Fig. 1 of the drawings, it will be also noted that .the air-escape duct 5| opens into the supplemental reservoir 45 above the level of the lower end of the sleeve-member 49, thereby facilitating the escape of air-bubbles from the supplemental reservoir.

The level of the oil in the reservoir 46 is substantially at the height of the ledge 44 and, consequently, the lower end of the member 49 extends a considerable distance below the level of the oil in this reservoir. In order to filter the oil and to retard its flow through the hollow hook-shaft 22, I have inserted a cartridge in its upper end. The cartridge comprises a cylindrically shaped metal member 52 formed with a capportion 52 at its upper end and its lower end is split and apertured to receive a piece of short wicking 53. The metal member 52 has its side wall flattened at 54 to provide clearance between the outer Wall of the cartridge and the inner wall of the tubular hook. The upper face of the base of the cup-shaped hook-body I6 is formed with a short slot 55 (Fig. 2) which intersects the bore in the shaft and when the cartridge is inserted,

the slot 55 and the flat 54' on the cartridge are aligned so that oil forced through the wick 53 by the pump member 49 will flow through the clearance between the cartridge and inner Wall of the shaft and into the groove from whence it is thrown by centrifugal action across the inner surface of the cup-shaped hook-body Hi to the raceway l8. In order to remove the cartridge from the bore in the shaft, a hole 56 has been drilled in the member 52 just below the cap 52' and is in alignment with the milled surface or flat 54, so that a pointed instrument ma be inserted in the hole 56 and the cartridge pulled or pried out of the bore. I

The reservoir 45 contains a substantial quantity of oil and to replenish the oil in this reservoir I have provided a vertical filling aperture 51, the lower end of which intersects a corner of th reservoir 45 (Fig. 3). The upper end of the aperture 51 removably receives an externally shouldered and vertically apertured bushing 58 which carries a conventional oil-level testing rod 59 having its lower end extending into an oil filtering basket 60 carried by the lower end of the bushing 58. From the above it will be understood that the bushing 58, test rod 59 and filter-basket 60 may be removed from the filling aperture 51 as a unit for the purpose of cleaning, inspecting and replacement of the filtering basket.

From the foregoing description, it will be observed that I have provided improved means for delivering oil from a main reservoir located below the level of the loop-taker to the loop-taker raceway, and that the oil is delivered from the main reservoir to a constant level auxiliary reservoir from whence it is pumped by centrifugal action to the racewa of the hook. It will also be observed that the wick 53 fits tightly in the bore 23 of the shaft 22 and that oil delivered to the lower end of the wick passes through the wick and is delivered through the clearance slot between the fiat 54 and the bore of the shaft to the groove 55, from whence it is thrown by centrifugal force to the interengaging surfaces between the loop-taker body and the thread-case.

Having thus set forth the nature of the invention, what I claim herein is:

1. A sewing machine having in combination, a work-support, a vertically disposed tubular hookshaft journaled in a housing locatedbelow said work-support, a driving shaft located below said Work-support and passing through said housing, gears operatively connecting said shafts, a looptaker carried by the upper end of said hook-shaft and having a raceway, a constant level auxiliary reservoir formed in said housing and locatedat the lower end of said hook-shaft and into which the lower end of the hook-shaft extends, a main reservoir, means including saidgears for supplying oilfr'om said main reservoir to said constant level auxiliary reservoir when the hook-shaft is rotated, and a sleeve member formed with a bore having the shape of an inverted'truncated cone carried. at the lower end of said hook-shaft for elevating'oii from said auxiliar reservoir to the raceway in the hook when them'achine is operated.

2., A sewing machine having'incombination, a work-support, a vertically disposed'tubular hookshaft journaled in a housing located below said work-support, means for rotating said hook-shaft, a loop-taker carried by the upper end of said shaft and having a raceway, a constant level auxiliary reservoir located at the lower end of said shaft and into which the lower end of the hook-shaft extends, a main reservoir, means for supplying oil from said main reservoir to said constant level auxiliary reservoir when the hookshaft is rotated, centrifugal pump means at the lower end of said hook-shaft for elevating oil from said auxiliary reservoir to the raceway in the hook, said pump means having an intake opening disposed below the lower end of said hook-shaft, and an air escape conduit leading upwardly from said auxiliary reservoir to permit air bubbles which may become trapped in said auxiliary reservoir to escape, said conduit having its lower end located above the intake opening of said pump.

3, A hook saddle for sewing machines, comprising, a chambered housing having one of its sides closed by a removable cover-plate, a vertically disposed shaft rotatably journaled in said housing and having a longitudinal bore, a rotary hook carried by the upper end of said shaft and provided with a raceway supplied with lubricant from the bore of said shaft, a bushing secured in said housing and forming the bearing for the lower end of said shaft, said bushing being closed at its lower end to provide a lubricant-reservoir open to the bore of said shaft, and said bushing being provided with a duct leading to said reservoir, a shelf located in said housing above the level of the lower end of said shaft, a lubricant-conduit having one of its sides closed by said cover-plate and connecting said shelf with said duct of the bushing, means for supplying lubricant to said shelf, and pump means carried by said shaft to extend into said auxiliary reservoir for elevating lubricant through the bore of said shaft to the raceway of said hook, said bushing being provided with an air-escape duct leading from said lubricant-reservoir and terminating in the upper end of said bushing within said housing.

4. A hook-saddle for sewing machines, comprising, a chambered housing provided with a main lubricant-reservoir, a shaft journaled in said housing for rotation about a vertical axis and having a longitudinal bore, a rotary hook carried by the upper end of said shaft and provided with a raceway supplied with lubricant from the bore of said shaft, a bushing secured in said housing and forming the bearing for the lower end of said shaft, said bushing being closed at its lower end to provide an auxiliary lubricantreservoir open to the bore of said shaft, a shelf located in said housing above the level of the supply of lubricant in said main reservoir, a lubricant-conduit leading from said shelf at one side of the axis of rotation of said shaft and connected with said auxiliary lubricant-reservoir, an air-escape duct leading from said auxiliary reservoir and provided in said bushing to terminate in the upper end thereof at the side of the axis of rotation of said shaft opposite said lubricant-conduit, "means rendered effective upon rotation of said shaft for supplying lubricant "from said main reservoir to said shelf, and pump means carried by said shaft for' elevating oil from said reservoir to the raceway of said book.

5. A sewing, machine 1 having a horizontally disposed work-support, a chambered housing disposed below said work-support and provided with a main lubricant-reservoir, a vertically disposed shaft rotatably journaled in said housing and having a longitudinal bore, a rotary hook carried by the upper end of said shaft and provided with a thread-carrier raceway supplied with lubricant from the bore of said shaft, a bushing secured in said housing and forming the bearing for the lower end of said shaft, said bushing being closed at its lower end to provide an auxiliary lubricantreservoir open to the bore of said shaft, and said bushing being provided with an air-escape duct leading from said auxiliary reservoir and terminating in the upper end of said bushing, a horizontally disposed shelf located in said housing at the upper end of said bushing, a lubricantconduit connecting said shelf and said auxiliary reservoir, a driving gear located in said housing and dipping into a supply of lubricant in said main reservoir, a gear driven by said driving gear and carried by said shaft in proximity to said shelf and the upper end of said bushing, and a sleeve-member former with a bore having the shape of an inverted truncated cone carried by the lower end of said shaft to extend into said auxiliary reservoir.

6. A hook-saddle for sewing machines, comprising, a chambered housing provided with a main lubricant-reservoir, a shaft journaled in said housing for rotation about a vertical-axis and having a longitudinal bore, a, rotary hook carried by the upper end of said shaft and formed with a raceway supplied with lubricant from the bore of said shaft, a bushing secured in said housing and forming the bearing for the lower end of said shaft, said bushing being closed at its lower end to provide an auxiliary lubricantreservoir, means effective during rotation of said shaft for supplying lubricant from said main reservoir to said auxiliary reservoir, a sleevemember formed with a bore having the shape of an inverted truncated cone carried by and extending from the lower end of said shaft into said auxiliary reservoir, said sleeve-member having a lubricant intake opening restricted in size with respect to the bore of said shaft, and

an air-escape duct provided in said bushing and opening from said auxiliary reservoir above the level of the intake-opening of said sleeve, said air-escape duct being larger in size than the intake-opening of said sleeve.

7. A loop-taker mechanism for sewing machines, comprising, a cup-shaped rotary-hook body having a bottom wall and a cylindrical side wall provided with a thread-carrier raceway, a tubular shaft extending from the bottom wall of said body and having its longitudinal bore open to the inner face of said bottom wall, said bottom wall being provided with an inclined slot leading from the bore of said shaft and terminating in the inner face of said bottom wall, a filtering cartridge removably fitted into the bore of said shaft and having its outer end substantially flush with the inner face of said bottom wall, said cartridge comprising a cylindrically shaped memhen having: a portion-oi its periphery fiafitenedl to prqvide a lubricant. passageway in the hora of- .saidv shaft: connected. by said; slot with the inner face of said bottom wall, and meansv eifectiveupon rotation of said-shaft for. supplying lubrieant through the bore ofsaid shaft and through said passageway to said raceway,

, mmvrmm REFERENCES CITED.

The" f'ollewing i efex lmces are of record? in the me Qfi' this patent:

N umber m Number 8 STATES PK'FEN'IfS Name m i Hayes i Aug. 28 19 m Parry Nbv'. 1'6,v 1'9 43 Bat'fi'ng i- M@1- 6;. 1942; Les Vesconte et a1 Sefif. 18],, 1935 Atfi'wood -h H25. 28} It? FOREIGN PATENTS Country I Date" GreatBritain' Apr; 13, 1942 

